By Juan Cole The pan-Arab London daily Hayat [Life] reports that members of the al-Anbar provincial council say they have met with American officials who are “disgusted” and the slowness of Baghdad to arm the Sunni Arab tribes fighting ISIL. Last week 220 members of the Al-Bu Nimr tribe were murdered by ISIL for taking […]
Archives for November 2014
Israeli Forces open fire on Palestinian Qalandia Demonstrators, Wounding 8
RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Eight Palestinians were injured on Friday after Israeli forces opened fire on demonstrators during clashes following Friday prayers near the Qalandia checkpoint north of Jerusalem. Several Palestinians were also injured by rubber-coated steel bullets and dozens suffered from suffocation from inhaling tear gas as Israeli soldiers fired large number of tear-gas grenades […]
Is ISIL’s Ideology really Grounded in Saudi Textbooks?
By Emile Nakhleh WASHINGTON (IPS) – According to an article published Oct. 21 on Al-Monitor, the Islamic State (ISIS or IS) has issued new regulations for the school systems under its control in Iraq and Syria. The announced purpose of the so-called guidelines, which carried the imprimatur of the group’s “Amir al-Mu’minin,” presumably leader Abu […]
Why are Berkeley Students Protesting Bill Maher as Commencement Speaker?
AJ+ “Bill Maher is scheduled to be the guest speaker at UC Berkeley’s fall graduation this December. But despite the university’s reputation for free speech, some students say Maher is too offensive toward Muslims, women and others to enjoy the honor of speaking at graduation. AJ+ spoke with the students leading the charge to cancel […]
Surprise: Since Billionaires caused Crash of 2009, Their Numbers have Doubled
Oxfam: “The gap between the rich and poor is spiralling out of control. Just 85 individuals have the same wealth as half the people on our planet. Such extreme economic inequality is standing in the way of ending global poverty, and widening other inequalities like the gap between women and men. It is time to […]
Iraq: Grand Ayatollah Sistani joins Hagel in calling for Arming Sunni Tribes of al-Anbar
By Juan Cole Al-Zaman (The Times of Baghdad reports that Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistan is calling, just as is US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, for the arming of Sunni tribes in al-Anbar Province to fight ISIL in Iraq. (The Shiite-dominated Iraqi government in Baghdad has been reluctant to move too quickly toward creating Sunni […]